Office



H. VAN GELDER. aurrcn ron VEHICLE aumPEns.

APPHCATION FILED OCT. I3. 192].

1,402,324, Patented Jan. 3,1922.

UNITED STATES ?ATENT 'QFFHCE.

Specification 01' Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 3, 1922.

Application fled come: is, m1. Serial no. comes.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, Humor VAN Gin-noun, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Jersey Cit in the county of Hudson and State of ew Jersey, have invented new and useful Improvements in Bufiers for Vehicle Bumpers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to buffers for vehicle bumpers, and has for its ob ect the providing of a casing which can be readily attached to a vehicle, with yield ng means for absorbing the excessive shock received by the bumper when the vehicle strikes an ect.

A further object of the invention resides in providing a vehicle bumper with a pneumatic spring casing which will not only tend to lessen the injury received by the uil'er, but also the person or object struck.

One of the salient defects found in the yieldin t )e of bufier, now in common use, an w ch aglplicants device is intended to overcome, is a fact that when the buffer is brought Hito contact with a solid or heavy object, it i often mdented and de 'formed as a result thereof, to such an'ex.

tent that it cannot again be made to assume its original formation Thisnot onl tends reatly diminish the ethciency an durato bill y of the bufl'er, but also in a considerable degree detracts from the issuers! appearance of the vehicle to wh it 13 attached.

By means of the present invention the excessive shock received by the bumper is absorbed by the buffer and the injury which would ordinarily be received by the bumper is therebyl prevented.

With t e above and other ob ects in view, this invention consists of the construction and arran ent of parts as are more fully H1 $efiglama e err 9 row Fig. l ih a top plan vi e v of a butler attached to a vehicle bumper.

Fig. 2 is a lo the line 22 of 1g. 1.

Fi 3 is a vertical section taken on the line 3 of Fig. 1, showing a cover attach, ment for the rearwardly extending bolts.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section taken on the line 4-4= of Fig. 1.

Fi 5 is a fragmentary view of the cover for t e bufier.

washersSB, which are arran 'tudinal swtion taken on Fig. 6 is a detail View of the slotted washer plate.

Referring to the drawings wherein like numerals represent like parts in the various h ures, 1 0 indicates an ordinary type of bu er which may be attached either to the forward or rearward end of a vehicle.

The present invention consists in a buffer comprising a neumatic casin 11 which is preferably male of rubberized @nbric, but may be of an other specific material or combination 0 materials. The ends of the casing are closed by means of the metal caps 12 secured to the casi by the straps 13, provided at their ends with the angular lugs 14 and 15 havin o euings therein to renews the thread b0 ts 16 to which are attached the threaded nuts 17. The radially extendin bolts 18 prevent rotation of the straps l with respect to the casing 11.

Diametrically disposed within the casin 11 are arranged a plurality of distended spiral spun? 19 attached attheir forward ends to the olts 20 which extend throu h the casmg 11 and are secured therbo by the nuts 1 in such a manner as to form an air tight compartment in the interior of the casing. The inner ends of the sprin 19 are similarly attached to bolts 22 whicextend through and are scared to the brackets 23 by the nuts 24 and washers 25, located 1n the recess portions 26 formed in the inner walls of the brackets 23.

The metal brackets 28 have their outer walls 27 concave so as to conform with the surface of the casing 11. To the inner walls of each of the brackets 23 are rigidly secured a pair of threaded bolts 28 and 29 which receive the correspondingly thread- .ed nuts 30 and 31.

The buffer is secured to the bumper 10 by means oi the metal plate 32 and leather god to be secured to each of the bracket members 28, by means of the rearwerdly extending bolts 2 and 29 and the nuts 30 and 81. The bumper 10 is attached to the butter by being interposed between the inner wall of the brackets 23 and plates 32 and washers 33,

as shown in Fig.

Air is admitted into the casing by the air valve 34!, which is arranfed adjacent one of the ca members 12. f for any reason, the in stable casing shoul become deflated, and'it hould be impossible to refill the same with air, an opening 35, to which is threadedly secured a closing ca 36, is arranged in the wall of the casing iametrically opposite and above the air valve 34 for the admission of water into the interior of the casing, thus providing auxiliary means for maintai assure in the casing capable of withstanding any shock that the bufier migyt receive.

hen the butler is attached to the forward bum r of an automobile that has to be crank by hand, a cover or shield 37 is provided to be attached to the plates 32, so as to form a shield for the rearwardly extending bolts 28 and 29, and thus-prevent any injury either to the person or the clothes of the one who i required to crank the machine.

The cover 37 is formed at one end with upwardly extending lugs 38, which are provided with openings 39, which register with the longitudinal ots 32' in the plates 32 and are adapted to be secured thereto by means of the nuts 38' as best shown in he cover 87 has its lower end 40 extendl downwardly and inwardly. under the b0 ts 29 so as to prevent these bolts from bein exposed.

Emile the hufler is shown for use on an automobile, it can be easily converted for use on trucks and heavy motor vehicles by increasing the thickness of the casing 11 and the size of the iprings 19.

By reason 0 the springs 19 being dia' metrically dis used within the interior of the casing an distended against the walls thereof additional yielding means is provided for assisting the air or liquid in the casing to absorb any excessive shock it might receive by being brought into contact with an object.

It is to be understood that the form of invention herein shown and described is to be taken as a preferred construction and ar rangeinent of arts may be made as will remain within t e spirit of the invention and scofxa of what is claimed.

claim:

1. A bufl'er for vehicle bumpers, comprisin a tubular casing, a plurality of diametrica y dis springs in said casing, a plu rality of rackets secured to said casing, and means on said brackets for attaching the but for to a vehicle.

2. A buffer for vehicle bumpers comprising an inflatable casing, springs in said casing, brackets secured to said springs, and means on said brackets for attaching the bufier to a vehicle.

3. A bufier for vehicle bumpers, comprising a tubular casing having diametrically disposed springs therein, and means attached to said springs for securing the bull'er to a vehicle bumper.

4. A butler for vehicle bumpers comprising a pneumatic casing having diametrically disposed sprin therein brackets having their outer wal concaved to conform to the surface of said casing, and means attached to said s rings for securing the casing to said brac et-s.

5. A butler for vehicle bumpers, comprismg a tubular pneumatic casing having diametrically disposed springs arranged therein, brackets, means on said brackets at tached to the ends of said s rings for securing the casing to the bracliets, and means in said brackets for attaching the bufl'er to a vehicle.

6. A bu lfer for vehicle bumpers comprising an inflatable casing having diametrically disposed sprin arranged therein, brackets having inwa y threaded bolts secured thereto, and means attached to said springs for securin the casin to the vehicle.

7. A be er for vehic e bumpers coin rising a tubular casing rovided with yiel means arranged wit in said casing, iiifi means attached to said yielding means for securin the casing to a vehicle.

8. A ufier for vehicle bumpers, comprising a casing, yielding means in said casi normall distended against the walls of sai casing, rackets having threaded bolts extending rearwardly therefrom attached to said casing, and means on said bolts for securin" the buffer to a vehicle.

9. n combination with a vehicle bumper, a buffer comprising a pneumatic casing having an air inlet valve and means for allowin the admission of a liquid into the easing w on the latter has become deflated.

10. In combination with a vehicle bumper, a bufier eomprisin a pneumatic casing having diametrically isposed springs arranged therein, an air inlet valve at one end of the casing, and independent means in said casing for the admission of a liquid when the casing has become deflated.

11. A butler for vehicle bumpers comprising a tubular casing, having diametrically disposed springs arranged therein, brackets secured to said casing, rearwardl extending bolts in said brackets, longitudinal slotted plates detachably secured to said bolts, and a shield extending over said bolts secured to said plates.

12. A bull'er for vehicle bumpers comprising a tubular casing, having diametrically disposed springs arranged therein, brackets secured to said casing, rearwardl extendin bolts in said brackets, longitudinal slot plates detachabl secured to said bolts, and a detachable s ield extending over said bolts secured to said plates.

13. A. bu fler for vehicle bumpers comprising a casing, diametrically disposed springs in said casing, means extending through the walls of said casing for normally maintainil the springs distended, brackets attach to said casin rearwardly extending bolts on said bracfiets, slotted plates detachably secured to said bolts, a shield attached to said plates and means attached to said bracket for securing the buffer to a vehicle.

14. A buffer for vehicle bumpers comprising a tubular casing having diametrically disposed springs therein, bolts extending through the walls of said casing and attached to the springs for keeping the latter normally distended, brackets secured to said casing, and means on said brackets for attaching the buffer to a. vehicle bumper.

15. A buffer for vehicle bumpers comprising a pneumatic casing, having diametrically disposed springs arranged therein.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

HENRY VAN GELDER.

Witness Wm. H. Wn'rPnNN. 

